Dr. James Lester received his Ph.D. in Computer Science in 1994 from the University of Texas at Austin. His research aims include devising intelligent computational systems that can adaptively support human-computer interaction and communication and applying basic AI research on computational linguistics and intelligent user interfaces to educational software. Specifically, his team at IntelliMedia Group investigates issues related to animated pedagogical agents, explanation generation (both natural language and multimodal), virtual cinematography and narrative prose generation. In collaboration with colleagues from NC State’s William and Ida Friday Institute for Educational Innovation, he has focused on the development of advanced learning technologies with an emphasis on intelligent tutoring systems, game-based learning environments and tutorial dialogue. Dr. Lester currently serves as Editor-In-Chief for the International Journal of Artificial Intelligence in Education. Email:lester@ncsu.edu
Hiller Spires
Dr. Spires, who has been on the NC State faculty since 1986, is a Professor of Literacy and Technology in the Department of Curriculum and Instruction. She received her Ph.D. in literacy education with a cognate in English from the University of South Carolina. Dr. Spires served as the founding director of The William and Ida Friday Institute for Educational Innovation from 2002-2006 and currently serves as FI Senior Research Fellow. Dr. Spires' research focuses on the effects of digital literacies on learning, including emerging literacies associated with gaming environments and Web 2.0 applications. She is co-PI on the NSF-funded projects, Crystal Island and Narrative Theatre. She has published in Journal of Educational Psychology, Cognition & Instruction, Journal of Adolescent & Adult Literacy, Literacy Research & Instruction, and Reading Psychology, among other journals. She coordinates the New Literacies & Global Learning graduate program. Dr. Spires and Dr. John Lee co-direct the Friday Institute’s New Literacies Collaborative. Check out Dr. Spires' website. Email: hiller_spires@ncsu.edu
John Nietfeld
Dr. Nietfeld is an Associate Professor of Educational Psychology in the College of Education at North Carolina State University. His current research emphasis falls within self-regulated learning (SRL) and metacognition. He has conducted a number of studies investigating how students monitor their behavior on cognitive tasks and he is particularly interested in the extent to which training within classroom contexts (K-12 through college) can facilitate more accurate monitoring of performance and strategy use. Currently, he is collaborating with computer science faculty to examine how to create intelligent game-based tutoring systems that will facilitate and scaffold SRL skills for elementary and middle school students in science. Dr. Nietfeld also teaches educational psychology, specifically focusing on metacognition and self-regulation.
Dr. Minogue teaches elementary science methods courses at both the undergraduate and graduate level. Much of his research centers on systematically exploring the use of haptics (simulated touch) in the teaching of school science concepts. He is also involved research projects that examine the prudent use of science notebooks and studies that explore pre-service teachers' evolving mental models of themselves as science teachers. Email: james_minogue@ncsu.edu
Brad Mott
Dr. Brad Mott completed his Ph.D. in Computer Science at North Carolina State University. His research has explored the generation of decision-theoretic models of narrative planning for interactive 3D learning environments. He currently works with the IntelliMedia and Liquid Narrative research groups at NC State to investigate the design, construction and empirical evaluation of computational mechanisms to support intelligent human-computer interaction and communication. He has held positions at Emergent Game Technologies, IBM, Analysts International Corporation and Nortel Networks. Dr. Mott co-founded LiveWire Logic, a venture-backed enterprise software start-up, where he served as the Vice President of Technology and worked with the development team to design, implement and refine the RealDialog™ product suite — an automated customer service solution leveraging corpus-based computational linguistics. Email: bwmott@ncsu.edu
Eleni Lobene
Eleni has been working with the CI-5 research team since January 2011. She completed her undergraduate degree in psychology at George Mason University and began her graduate work at North Carolina State University. She is currently finishing her dissertation in the Industrial/Organizational Psychology department. She is the Grants and Projects Coordinator for the IntelliMedia Group, the computer science team for Crystal Island. Email: eleni.lobene@gmail.com
Kristen Hoffman
Kristin F. Hoffmann completed a Ph.D. in Curriculum and Instruction: Educational Psychology at NC State University in 2010 under the supervision of Dr. John Nietfeld. She currently works as an assistant teaching professor in the educational psychology department and as a post-doctoral research fellow on Crystal Island. Her research interests are in the areas of self-regulation, metacognition and reading comprehension. She is currently focusing her research on metacognitive monitoring and control of cognitive processes during reading and on the promotion of self-regulated learning within virtual learning environments. Email: klhoffma@nscu.edu
Angela Meluso
Angela Meluso is currently a Doctoral Candidate in the Lifespan Developmental Psychology program at North Carolina State University. Her overall research interests include examining developmental differences in children’s eyewitness memory and source-monitoring ability. More specifically, her research interests include examining preschool children’s ability to remember and report about experienced events that are traumatic or stressful in nature (i.e., crimes, physical and sexual abuse, etc.) and the circumstances under which preschool children’s memory for such events is most and least accurate. She began working with Dr. Spires at The Friday Institute in the summer of 2010 on the CRYSTAL ISLAND project. She has been involved in both data collection and data analysis during various iterations of the CRYSTAL ISLAND project and looks forward to working with the teachers this upcoming year! Email：acmeluso@ncsu.edu
Meixun (Sinky) Zheng
Meixun Zheng is currently a Doctoral Candidate in the Literacy and Technology program in the Department of Curriculum & Instruction at NC State University. Her research interests focus on teacher education/professional development and digital learning technologies. Specifically, she is interested in how emerging Internet and Communication Tools can be effectively integrated in classrooms to facilitate students' 21st century literacy learning. She is a Graduate Research Assistant at the William & Ida Friday Institute for Educational Innovation, working with Dr. Spires on the NSF-funded CRYSTAL ISLAND digital game-based learning project. Email: mzheng@ncsu.edu
L.Manning Pruden
L. Manning Pruden received a dual major, B.S. in Education and B.A. in Art from the College of Charleston, in 2006. After completing her degree, Manning worked as a literacy coach, an elementary teacher in South Africa and a literacy outreach coordinator for an educational non-profit organization. Manning received her Master’s degree in Education from North Carolina State University. She is a graduate research assistant at the Friday Institute for Educational Innovation, working on a NSF grant to develop a web-based writing tool for middle school students. She hopes to eventually relocate to Kenya to cultivate her interest in international education reform. Email: justmanning@hotmail.com
Erin Lyjak
Erin Lyjak is a research associate at the Friday Institute for Educational Innovation and is working on the New Literacies Collaborative project. She received her Master's degree in Experimental Psychology from Radford University. Erin has been in the field of educational research for over 10 years. Prior to joining The New Literacies team, she worked on a wide range of educational studies, including those examining school violence prevention, standardized testing, PISA and chancellor reviews. Email:eelyjak@ncsu.com
April Scott
April Scott is a Ph. D student in Literacy and Technology in Department of Curriculum and Instruction at NC State University. Her research focuses on K-12 reading education. Email: aascott@ncsu.edu
Shannon Page is a 4th/5th multi-age teacher at A.B. Combs Leadership Magnet Elementary. She has taught 3rd grade for 3 years and 5th grade for 2 years. She attended Longwood University in Virginia.
Allaina is currently a 5th grade teacher at Leesville Elementary. She graduated in December of 2101 from UNCW with a Bachelor of Arts in Elementary Education. She is currently pursuing a Masters degree at NC State.
Karen has been teaching in Wake County for almost 20 years. Currently she is teaching 5th grade at Underwood Elementary G&T Magnet School. Karen said the Crystal Island experience inspires her to be a 21st century learner and teacher!
Danielle is currently a 5th grade teacher at Mills Park Elementary in Cary, NC teaching math and science. She has been teaching for nine years in NC and has taught both 3rd and 5th grades. She is originally from Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania and attended college at Indiana University of Pennsylvania in Indiana, PA.
Tom is a fifth grade teacher at Mills Park Elementary School in Cary, NC. He has taught in Wake County for nineteen years (9 years as an instructional technology specialist and 10 years as a classroom teacher). He received a B.S. Degree from Houghton College in 1990 and a M.Ed. from North Carolina State University in 1997. He believes in the power of technology and creatively explores its application in my classroom. He is excited about the opportunity to participate in the Crystal Island Game-Based Learning Institute and spring research project.
Katie Calhoun is a 5th grade teacher at Mills Park Elementary School. She is originally from Cleveland, Ohio. Katie has lived and taught in North Carolina for 14 years and feels very fortunate to be raising a family in such a wonderful area.
Stephanie Thorb was recently a Wake County fifth grade teacher at Leesville Elementary School and just began working at Green Year Round in July. Stephanie is a former North Carolina Teaching Fellow and has been teaching for 8 years. She enjoys science a great deal and looks forward to the new technology NC State is providing!
Institute LeadersJames Lester
Dr. James Lester received his Ph.D. in Computer Science in 1994 from the University of Texas at Austin. His research aims include devising intelligent computational systems that can adaptively support human-computer interaction and communication and applying basic AI research on computational linguistics and intelligent user interfaces to educational software. Specifically, his team at IntelliMedia Group investigates issues related to animated pedagogical agents, explanation generation (both natural language and multimodal), virtual cinematography and narrative prose generation. In collaboration with colleagues from NC State’s William and Ida Friday Institute for Educational Innovation, he has focused on the development of advanced learning technologies with an emphasis on intelligent tutoring systems, game-based learning environments and tutorial dialogue. Dr. Lester currently serves as Editor-In-Chief for the International Journal of Artificial Intelligence in Education.
Email: lester@ncsu.edu
Hiller Spires
Dr. Spires, who has been on the NC State faculty since 1986, is a Professor of Literacy and Technology in the Department of Curriculum and Instruction. She received her Ph.D. in literacy education with a cognate in English from the University of South Carolina. Dr. Spires served as the founding director of The William and Ida Friday Institute for Educational Innovation from 2002-2006 and currently serves as FI Senior Research Fellow. Dr. Spires' research focuses on the effects of digital literacies on learning, including emerging literacies associated with gaming environments and Web 2.0 applications. She is co-PI on the NSF-funded projects, Crystal Island and Narrative Theatre. She has published in Journal of Educational Psychology, Cognition & Instruction, Journal of Adolescent & Adult Literacy, Literacy Research & Instruction, and Reading Psychology, among other journals. She coordinates the New Literacies & Global Learning graduate program. Dr. Spires and Dr. John Lee co-direct the Friday Institute’s New Literacies Collaborative. Check out Dr. Spires' website.
Email: hiller_spires@ncsu.edu
John Nietfeld
Dr. Nietfeld is an Associate Professor of Educational Psychology in the College of Education at North Carolina State University. His current research emphasis falls within self-regulated learning (SRL) and metacognition. He has conducted a number of studies investigating how students monitor their behavior on cognitive tasks and he is particularly interested in the extent to which training within classroom contexts (K-12 through college) can facilitate more accurate monitoring of performance and strategy use. Currently, he is collaborating with computer science faculty to examine how to create intelligent game-based tutoring systems that will facilitate and scaffold SRL skills for elementary and middle school students in science. Dr. Nietfeld also teaches educational psychology, specifically focusing on metacognition and self-regulation.
Email address: john_nietfeld@ncsu.edu
James Minogue
Dr. Minogue teaches elementary science methods courses at both the undergraduate and graduate level. Much of his research centers on systematically exploring the use of haptics (simulated touch) in the teaching of school science concepts. He is also involved research projects that examine the prudent use of science notebooks and studies that explore pre-service teachers' evolving mental models of themselves as science teachers.
Email: james_minogue@ncsu.edu
Brad Mott
Dr. Brad Mott completed his Ph.D. in Computer Science at North Carolina State University. His research has explored the generation of decision-theoretic models of narrative planning for interactive 3D learning environments. He currently works with the IntelliMedia and Liquid Narrative research groups at NC State to investigate the design, construction and empirical evaluation of computational mechanisms to support intelligent human-computer interaction and communication. He has held positions at Emergent Game Technologies, IBM, Analysts International Corporation and Nortel Networks. Dr. Mott co-founded LiveWire Logic, a venture-backed enterprise software start-up, where he served as the Vice President of Technology and worked with the development team to design, implement and refine the RealDialog™ product suite — an automated customer service solution leveraging corpus-based computational linguistics.
Email: bwmott@ncsu.edu
Eleni Lobene
Eleni has been working with the CI-5 research team since January 2011. She completed her undergraduate degree in psychology at George Mason University and began her graduate work at North Carolina State University. She is currently finishing her dissertation in the Industrial/Organizational Psychology department. She is the Grants and Projects Coordinator for the IntelliMedia Group, the computer science team for Crystal Island.
Email: eleni.lobene@gmail.com
Kristen Hoffman
Kristin F. Hoffmann completed a Ph.D. in Curriculum and Instruction: Educational Psychology at NC State University in 2010 under the supervision of Dr. John Nietfeld. She currently works as an assistant teaching professor in the educational psychology department and as a post-doctoral research fellow on Crystal Island. Her research interests are in the areas of self-regulation, metacognition and reading comprehension. She is currently focusing her research on metacognitive monitoring and control of cognitive processes during reading and on the promotion of self-regulated learning within virtual learning environments.
Email: klhoffma@nscu.edu
Angela Meluso
Angela Meluso is currently a Doctoral Candidate in the Lifespan Developmental Psychology program at North Carolina State University. Her overall research interests include examining developmental differences in children’s eyewitness memory and source-monitoring ability. More specifically, her research interests include examining preschool children’s ability to remember and report about experienced events that are traumatic or stressful in nature (i.e., crimes, physical and sexual abuse, etc.) and the circumstances under which preschool children’s memory for such events is most and least accurate. She began working with Dr. Spires at The Friday Institute in the summer of 2010 on the CRYSTAL ISLAND project. She has been involved in both data collection and data analysis during various iterations of the CRYSTAL ISLAND project and looks forward to working with the teachers this upcoming year!
Email：acmeluso@ncsu.edu
Meixun (Sinky) Zheng
Meixun Zheng is currently a Doctoral Candidate in the Literacy and Technology program in the Department of Curriculum & Instruction at NC State University. Her research interests focus on teacher education/professional development and digital learning technologies. Specifically, she is interested in how emerging Internet and Communication Tools can be effectively integrated in classrooms to facilitate students' 21st century literacy learning. She is a Graduate Research Assistant at the William & Ida Friday Institute for Educational Innovation, working with Dr. Spires on the NSF-funded CRYSTAL ISLAND digital game-based learning project.
Email: mzheng@ncsu.edu
L.Manning Pruden
L. Manning Pruden received a dual major, B.S. in Education and B.A. in Art from the College of Charleston, in 2006. After completing her degree, Manning worked as a literacy coach, an elementary teacher in South Africa and a literacy outreach coordinator for an educational non-profit organization. Manning received her Master’s degree in Education from North Carolina State University. She is a graduate research assistant at the Friday Institute for Educational Innovation, working on a NSF grant to develop a web-based writing tool for middle school students. She hopes to eventually relocate to Kenya to cultivate her interest in international education reform.
Email: justmanning@hotmail.com
Erin Lyjak
Erin Lyjak is a research associate at the Friday Institute for Educational Innovation and is working on the New Literacies Collaborative project. She received her Master's degree in Experimental Psychology from Radford University. Erin has been in the field of educational research for over 10 years. Prior to joining The New Literacies team, she worked on a wide range of educational studies, including those examining school violence prevention, standardized testing, PISA and chancellor reviews.
Email:eelyjak@ncsu.com
April Scott
April Scott is a Ph. D student in Literacy and Technology in Department of Curriculum and Instruction at NC State University. Her research focuses on K-12 reading education.
Email: aascott@ncsu.edu
A.B. Combs Elementary
Cathy Ashton (replace Ms. Cox)
5th grade teacher
Email:cashton@wcpss.net
Eugene Wheeler
5th grade teacher
Email: wwheeler1@wcpss.net
Angela Headley
5th grade teacher
Email: aheadley@wcpss.net
Shea Grisham
5th grade teacher
Email: jgrisham@wcpss.net
Shannon Page
Multi grade teacher
Email: spage@wcpss.net
Shannon Page is a 4th/5th multi-age teacher at A.B. Combs Leadership Magnet Elementary. She has taught 3rd grade for 3 years and 5th grade for 2 years. She attended Longwood University in Virginia.
Teacher Participants
Blue Ridge Elementary
Martha Turner
5th Grade Teacher
Email: martha.turner@ashe.k12.nc.us
Katy Waddell
5th Grade Teacher
Email: katy.waddell@ashe.k12.nc.us
Sheila Johnson (*)
5th Grade Teacher
Email: sheila.johnson@ashe.k12.nc.us
Susan Poe (*)
5th Grade Teacher
Email: susan.poe@ashe.k12.nc.us
Sandy Shaw
5th Grade Teacher
Email: sandy.shaw@ashe.k12.nc.us
Powhatan Elementary
Mike Engeman
5th Grade Teacher
Email: mikeengeman@johnston.k12.nc.us
Leesville Elementary
Thomas ReBant
5th Grade Teacher
Email: trebant@wcpss.net
Bob Kradel
5th Grade Teacher
Email: rkradel@wcpss.net
Evan Jones
5th Grade Teacher
Email: ejones4@wcpss.net
Allison Kniedler
5th Grade Teacher
Email: akniedler@wcpss.net
Allaina Pawlowski
5th Grade Teacher
Email: apawlowski@wcpss.net
Allaina is currently a 5th grade teacher at Leesville Elementary. She graduated in December of 2101 from UNCW with a Bachelor of Arts in Elementary Education. She is currently pursuing a Masters degree at NC State.
Lisa Wainscott
5th Grade Teacher
Email: lwainscott@wcpss.net
Underwood Elementary
Karen L. Fichter-Venners
5th Grade Teacher
Email: klfichter@wcpss.net
Karen has been teaching in Wake County for almost 20 years. Currently she is teaching 5th grade at Underwood Elementary G&T Magnet School. Karen said the Crystal Island experience inspires her to be a 21st century learner and teacher!
Heather Peaden
5th Grade Teacher
Email: hpeaden@wcpss.net
Kelly Nsytrom * (replace Mr. R)
5th Grade TeacherEmail: knystrom@wcpss.net
Mills Park Elementary
Danielle McCaslin
5th Grade Teacher
Email:dmccaslin@wcpss.net
Danielle is currently a 5th grade teacher at Mills Park Elementary in Cary, NC teaching math and science. She has been teaching
for nine years in NC and has taught both 3rd and 5th grades. She is originally from Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania and attended college at Indiana University of Pennsylvania in Indiana, PA.
Tom Treichler
5th Grade Teacher
Email: dtreichler@wcpss.net
Tom is a fifth grade teacher at Mills Park Elementary School in Cary, NC. He has taught in Wake County for nineteen years (9 years as an instructional
technology specialist and 10 years as a classroom teacher). He received a B.S. Degree from Houghton College in 1990 and a M.Ed. from North
Carolina State University in 1997. He believes in the power of technology and creatively explores its application in my classroom. He is excited about
the opportunity to participate in the Crystal Island Game-Based Learning Institute and spring research project.
Katie Calhoun (*)
5th Grade Teacher
Email: kcalhoun@wcpss.net
Katie Calhoun is a 5th grade teacher at Mills Park Elementary School. She is originally from Cleveland, Ohio. Katie has lived and taught in North Carolina for 14 years and feels very fortunate to be raising a family in such a wonderful area.
Green Elementary
Stephanie Thorb
5th Grade Teacher
Email: sthorb@wcpss.net
Stephanie Thorb was recently a Wake County fifth grade teacher at Leesville Elementary School and just began working at Green Year Round in July. Stephanie is a former North Carolina Teaching Fellow and has been teaching for 8 years. She enjoys science a great deal and looks forward to the new technology NC State is providing!
Michael Coysh
5th Grade Teacher
Email: mcoysh@wcpss.net
Mary Anne Ruffin (* )
5th Grade Teacher
Email: mruffin@wcpss.net
Linda Draganchuk
5th Grade Teacher
Email: ldraganchuk@wcpss.net
Mountain View Elementary (Ashe County)--added after institute
Coleen Dixon (*)
colleen.dixon@ashe.k12.nc.us
Susan Greer (*)
susan.greer@ashe.k12.nc.us
Frances Eller (*)
frances.eller@ashe.k12.nc.us
Kasey Overcash (*)--Replace Teresa Wiles
kasey.overcash@ashe.k12.nc.us
Note: